June 15, 2005

2005 Schedule in PDF Format
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Non-conference tournaments in San Francisco and Rhode Island, the annual GlaxoSmithKline UNC Volleyball Classic and the first-ever 22-match ACC campaign highlight the 2005 University of North Carolina volleyball schedule, announced today by head coach Joe Sagula.

The Tar Heels will open the season Sept. 2-3 at the Golden Gate Classic, hosted by the University of San Francisco. The five-team field features Long Island University, one of five teams on the schedule that appeared in last year's NCAA Tournament. The next weekend Carolina will host its annual home tournament, which features Purdue, South Carolina and Coastal Carolina. The non-conference portion of the schedule ends with the URI Invitational in Kingston, R.I., and features nationally-ranked Arizona and Connecticut. The Huskies are coached by former Tar Heel and 2003 alum Holly Strauss.

"Once again our goal is to play a challenging, national schedule," Sagula said. "Purdue and Arizona are both great teams that won matches in the NCAA Tournament last year. All three of our non-conference tournaments feature strong programs from throughout the country. As always, our home tournament features a great field that will provide a lot of excitement."

The 2005 season also features a new twist in league play. For the first time ever, the ACC schedule will be a 22-match double round-robin format with no conference tournament at the end of the year. Each team will play the other 11 teams in the league home and home, with matches running through Thanksgiving weekend. The league also features a new member - Boston College.

"We are entering a whole new era of ACC volleyball," Sagula said. "The coaches and players are very enthusiastic about the new format. It places a new importance on each regular season match, as the regular season champion now receives the league's NCAA Tournament bid."

Highlights of the league schedule include opening the ledger with a home weekend against Virginia Tech and Virginia, visiting Duke for the first road league match and hosting Georgia Tech in the Smith Center. The match against the Yellow Jackets will be played prior to the opening of men's basketball practice. The last time the volleyball team played at the Smith Center, the match attracted an NCAA record crowd of 16,126 to see the Tar Heels defeat Duke in one of the most exciting matches in program history.

"It's great to be opening league play at home and then following that with a big match at Duke," Sagula said. "There has been a good deal of turnover in experience across the league, and there will be a number of schools contending for the conference title. We are very excited about playing in the Smith Center again this year, and hosting one of our biggest rivals in Georgia Tech. It should be an outstanding night of volleyball between two great programs."